A federal court ruling has thrown the future of Florida’s controversial Everglades detention facility, ‘Alligator Alcatraz,’ into doubt.
The decision came from U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams, whose order barred the Trump administration and the state of Florida from bringing in more detainees and required steps to begin dismantling it.
Who is Kathleen Williams?
Williams, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, has served on the bench since 2011. She recently ruled in a case brought by Green groups and the Miccosukee tribe, which contended that the detention facility infringed federal environmental law.
On Thursday, she made clear that the state must halt construction and begin removing fencing, lighting, and generators within 60 days.
“Every Florida governor, every Florida senator, and countless local and national political figures, including presidents, have publicly pledged their unequivocal support for the restoration, conservation and protection of the Everglades,” she noted in her ruling.
“This order does nothing more than uphold the basic requirements of legislation designed to fulfill those promises.”
What is Alligator Alcatraz?
The facility, located at a remote airstrip west of Miami, was opened by Governor Ron DeSantis and was expected to house up to 4,000 individuals facing deportation.
Though state officials called it as a temporary holding site, the groups behind the lawsuit, Friends of the Everglades, the Center of Biological Diversity, and the Miccosukee Tribe stated that it ignored the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), which requires citizen input and the completion of a rigorous Environmental Impact Assessment.
The lawsuit claimed that such a facility was a threat to species like the Florida panther and some tribal practices that depend on hunting and gathering.
Williams agreed, “That the deputized officers’ regular salaries are paid, required uniforms are bought, and standard work hours are controlled by their state agency supervisors is not germane … because their status there as deputized officers and their activities at the camp are controlled by ICE,”
Kevin Guthrie, Florida’s emergency management chief, filed quickly to overturn the ruling.
